Ihor D. Stepaniuk (Khamas)

Senior soldier Ihor Stepaniuk (call sign Hamas) was killed in action on June 20, 2022, in battle with the occupiers near the town of Toretsk in Donetsk region. The warrior's life was cut short by enemy tank fire. Four days before that, the defender turned 47 years old. Ihor was born and raised in the city of Pershotravensk, Kharkiv region. He graduated from the local school No. 3 and evening school. For a long time, he worked at a chemical plant, was actively engaged in volunteer activities. Since 2009, he lived in the city of Boryspil, Kyiv region. In 2016-2019, he participated in the ATO/OOS in Donbas. When he returned, he worked and was engaged in volunteer activities. Later, he went abroad to earn money. On the second day of the full-scale invasion, on February 25, 2022, Ihor unhesitatingly went to the front for the second time to defend his land, state, and family. He overcame a long distance from Poland to Ukraine to join the ranks of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. He became a fighter of the 72nd separate mechanized brigade named after the Black Zaporozhians. He was the senior gunner of the machine gun platoon. "Heroes are not born, they become. They become such men who are not afraid to take up arms when a aggressor encroaches on their native land. Heroes do not die. They rise to heaven, pass into eternity and defend us and our children from there. I want to express my condolences to the family. You have lost a father, a son today. But you have today - in my face, in the face of comrades - the same son and father. We will always come to your aid. We will defend our land, given by God, to the last breath. Let the fallen warrior rest in peace," said Boryspil Mayor Volodymyr Borysenko at the farewell ceremony with the warrior. The defender was buried in the Alley of Honorary Burials of the Rohozivskyi Cemetery in Boryspil. Ihor left behind his mother Halyna Petrivna, wife Maryna, daughters Daria and Victoria, grandchildren Daniil and Artem. Posthumously, Senior Soldier Ihor Stepaniuk was awarded the Order "For Courage" of the III degree.